Childhood
by LiveLaughLoveReadForever
Summary: A series of one-shots that shows scenes through-out Erik's childhood. Begins with his birth. "Elizabeth gazed down at...at...it. His eye sockets were sunken into his head and though his eyes sparkled a beautiful gold color, it was immediately overlooked as she looked at the deformity of her son's face."
1. Chapter 1

So much pain. The midwife sounded miles away, yet even through her haziness of pain Elizabeth knew to obey her commands. Gritting her teeth, Elizabeth pushed with all her might as the midwife- Jacqueline- commanded her too.

"Almost there," stated Jacqueline as Elizabeth felt like crying in relief. This pain was worse than anything she had ever been submitted to. Thank God it was almost over!

All of a sudden the pain lessened and there was a loud crying noise. The crying was melodious, beautiful. She was done. The pain was over. She let out a deep breath as she realized that she was finally going to be able to hold her child.

"Oh...," Jacqueline was silent as she cleaned the newborn child, "It's a...it's a boy."

"A boy," breathed Elizabeth. She was thoroughly exhausted, but the excitement she felt about seeing her son for the first time made her momentarily forget her tiredness. A boy...maybe he would look like his father. A reminder of his life. A living monument to her late husband. "Let me see him."

"Oh...Madame I don't know if you should...," replied the midwife.

"Don't be silly. Let me see my child," replied Elizabeth.

Jacqueline sighed deeply and rapped the child in a cover before handing him to his mother. Elizabeth smiled half-way at her midwife as she reached for her son. She smiled. Anything that possessed such a miraculous voice, had to be just as beautiful as the voice it owned.

Moving the covers that Jacqueline had placed around the boy, Elizabeth gazed down at...at..._it_. His eye sockets were sunken into his head and though his eyes sparkled a beautiful gold color, it was immediately overlooked as Elizabeth looked at the deformity of her son's face. Where there was supposed to be a nose there was a cavernous hole. His nearly nonexistent lips tried to suckle open air, but Elizabeth didn't notice her son's apparent hunger. Thin black hair was a shock against his pale skin.

He reached up and touched his mother's face. His hands were ice cold and Elizabeth immediately recoiled in revulsion. She had never laid her eyes upon anything as hideous as the small child in her arms. Her child... He had promised! He had promised that they were going to have a perfect child together! This...this was not what she was supposed to get. She was supposed to get a handsome baby, with beautiful glistening eyes, smooth skin, full lips, and an actual nose. But she was denied all of those things. Things that should have been her right to receive, not a privilege.

"What...what do I do with it?" asked Elizabeth. Turning away from what she was doing, Jacqueline looked at the brand new mother.

"What ever do you mean?" asked the young midwife, with a worried expression.

"What do I do with it?" repeated Elizabeth with more force than she had originally used.

"Madame... It?" Jacqueline asked, horrified by what the new mother was calling her newborn son.

"Yes, it," Elizabeth spit out, tears slipping out of her eyes, "What do I do with this...this...this devil's child?"

"Love him! Cherish him! He's the last part of your husband you have left! The child may be deformed, but he still needs a mother's care and his mother's love!" Jacqueline replied angrily.

Jacqueline was barren and had often wished for children, something her and her husband both knew wasn't possible. She became a midwife to help new mothers as they gave birth and to secretly enjoy the emotion coming off of them that she would never truly get to feel. She would give anything for a child and being able to feel the joy that she knew that people felt when they held their child for the first time. Why was this woman taking the blessing of childbirth for granted? Just because her son wasn't perfect? Some people would give everything up to have a child of their own-even if they were deformed!

Elizabeth snorted. "The last part of my husband left? No! This child was touched by the devil! Evil! Pure evil is what I am holding! Why must I have received the damned child though? Why have I done bad enough to deserve this?"

"Maybe," Jacqueline couldn't help say, "It's not what you've done in the past, but what you'll do in the future that brands you with the mark of the devil, as you say the child does."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and glanced back at her child. "Why? First my husband was taken away from me and then my child was too. Maybe it would be for the best if I...if I got rid of it. The river isn't too far from here."

"Madame! What has possessed you to even think like that? If you do that then you will truly be marked by the devil!" cried Jacqueline.

Elizabeth glanced down at her child. As much as she didn't want it to, the midwife's words rang truth. Why, oh why, must she be cursed like this? Marked by the devil with the child and marked without the child. How could the child that had two parents that were so brilliantly beautiful that they could almost be classified as the most delightful people to look at in France be so dreadfully ugly?

"What shall I name it?" Elizabeth finally asked, defeated, "I doubt Quasimodo would be a favorable name...although it does fit."

Jacqueline looked horrified. "Pick a name from your heart. What were you planning on naming him before you saw his face?"

Elizabeth didn't respond. The name she had picked out was beautiful. Too beautiful for a child of his looks. She didn't want to tell the young women who had helped her with the birth the name she had originally picked out, but it slipped out anyway. "Erik."

"Then name him Erik. Name him Erik and love him as you would have loved him if his face was as beautiful as your late husband's."

Elizabeth glanced down again at ...Erik. He was just unattractive as he was the first time she had laid upon him. Reaching up, Erik's small hands tried to touch his mother again, but she immediately recoiled in disgust and revulsion. He seemed to lower his hand with an air of sadness, but he was only a few hours old. He couldn't be "sad". Or could he...

_ I won't be able to take my child out in public!_ Elizabeth realized with a flourish. _They would ridicule him and me with him. They would call him devil's spawn and they say I was just as touched by the devil as he was. _

_ He'll always have to stay home then. Always indoors, never outside. _

She shook her head, depressed at the awful ideas of how her life was going to be now. She would have to see his face...everyday for the rest of her life.

An idea struck her. _How about a mask? _He could be hidden away behind a mask, behind walls! No one would have to know that the beautiful lady's son who wore the mask and never exited the house was disfigured and deformed.

She wouldn't have to see his face everyday either. That would work. It would have to! This was the only way life would work. This was how her life was meant to happen.

* * *

It didn't work. She still saw his face. Everyday. Even when he wore the mask she could see right through it and see the horrific mess of his face. And she hated it. She hated everything about her life. She hated everything about _him. _Elizabeth didn't allow her son to eat with her. She would have no doubt noticed the mask and she would have seen right through it and she would have seen the monstrous face that she forced him to keep hidden with a mask that he willingly wore to make his mother happy. The monstrous face that she told him no one could love.

* * *

When he finally ran away, she hoped that she could get some kind of relief. Maybe she would finally be free of the images of his tortured face. Maybe she could finally start enjoying her life again. But that didn't happen.

She still saw his face. During the day, in her dreams, in her nightmares... She never stopped seeing his face. There wasn't a day after his birth that she wasn't haunted by his face. Not even on her deathbed was she free of his face.

"Erik," she whispered before the light completely faded from her eyes. "I'm sorry."

* * *

_In case you couldn't tell, I absolutely HATE Elizabeth/Erik's mom/Madeline and I decided to right this one-shot to get my feelings of hatred out of my system. Sort of. I mean, come on, what sort of heartless person won't give their son a kiss? Or gives them a MASK (unless it's on Halloween *coughPhantomoftheawkwardanyo ne?cough*) ? _

_^^ True story. _

_Anyway, I know in Kay's story Erik's mom's name is Madeline, but I don't think that name fits her. It's too...IDK, so I decided to change it. _

_:D (Rebellious!) _

_So, I was wondering what you guys thought about me doing a series of one-shots following Erik's childhood. They'll be somewhat based on this one-shot. I'm not sure if I'll end up doing it, but I really want to write the scene where Erik asks his mom for a kiss and she turns him down. _

_...Yeah. _

_This story was pretty short only a 1,000 and something words, but I (personally) am actually really proud of it. Usually, I write humor/romance/family fics so this was a step away from what I normall right with all the angst and stuff._

_So anyway, tell me what you thought of this story and what you thought of my idea to sort of continue this one-shot thing. I might continue it on this story or I may start a BRAND NEW STORY just for it. I'm not sure yet...  
_

_Thanks for reading and I really hope you enjoyed it! :)_


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer; I don't own Phantom of the Opera. :( _

_Erik's about 4 here. Yes, he does have a highly developed thought process for_ _his age, but he _is _a freaking genius! :)_

* * *

Why is it that Mother never stays in the same room with me for very long? What is it about me that makes her run away? What do I do that causes her to shun me in such ways? Why does she always flee my presense or command me to leave her? I ache for her presense, but she never stays with me for very long. She makes me wear this dreadfully uncomfortable mask, but it seems to please her when I wear it so I don't complain about it. Today I left my room and looked for her. She was sitting in the living room, staring at nothing, as she often is when I exit my room. Her gaze snapped towards me and she glared at me for a few moments before she returned to staring at the empty air.

"Mother?" I said softly. She didn't respond and I risked walking a few steps closer to her. Again she didn't move. "May Erik...may Erik...may Erik sit with you?"

I recieved no response. There was no glare that told me to stay away and she was still sitting in her chair staring straight ahead. She hadn't run away yet.

_Perhaps, _I thought, _today Mother will show me affection. Perhaps she'll show me affection like the mothers that I see walking outside give to their children. _

I wandered over to the seat that was farthest from where she was placed and cautiously sat down. She didn't acknowledge me and I sighed in relief. She hadn't sent me away as she normally does when I attempt to sit with her. I enjoyed this feeling of sitting with her. I placed my head on my hands and lightly closed my eyes. When I opened them she was still unmoving. Nervously, I shifted a bit closer towards her without leaving my own chair. When I didn't elict an emotion from her, I let out a soft breath of relief. She had yet to flee from me... I felt my heart leap at the possiblity of Mother allowing me to sit closer than I already was. I glanced from her to the seat that was next to me. She seemed unresponsive and I felt a bubble of hope in my chest-would she finally show me love?

I hoped she would.

"Mother," I said quietly. She finally looked at me, disgust was evident in her gaze. What is it about me that disgusts her...? I stopped talking for a moment before I gathered up the small amount of courge I had left. "Mother, would you...can you...will you...Would you grant Erik a kiss?"

Mother froze and looked at me and the disgust was so evident that I had to avert my eyes. There was a weight in my heart. What could I change about myself that would stop her disgust? What would I have to do that would make her love me?

"Erik," Mother said and there was a sense of warning in her voice that I couldn't ignore. "I will not kiss you. Not now, not ever. Now why don't you...go...do something elsewhere?"

I stood up and with a small nod, slumped towards my room. And there I stayed until the sun went down. Now I lay in bed and I reflect on the day before.

Mother...why won't you love me?

* * *

_I'm so not happy with this peice. I may take it down and edit it soon. I want to hear what you guys thought about it though. Most of the chapters will be in 3rd person though, but I just felt like this story should be written in Erik's POV. Like I said, though, I'm probably going to take it down and edit it and change it. :) _

_Thank you for all of the kind reviews that I got on the last chapter! You guys are AWESOME! :)_

_EDIT: Yeah, I accidentally posted the wrong thing for chapter 2... This is the REAL chapter 2, but if you liked the original check out my one-shot The Truth. That was the first chapter 2 story. :)_


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